SCOTLAND coach Derek Forsyth was elated about the progress his squad made in the three test match series against Spain in Barcelona, culminating in a 2-2 draw in the final game against a side ranked 11th in the world.
Forsyth's charges were untried this year - this was their first outing in nine months - and contained six under-21 players while the Spanish were in the final stages of their build-up for the forthcoming World League semi-final and had played over 20 matches this year already.
The Scots lost their opening fixtures 6-0 and 4-2, Gavin Byers and Alan Forsyth were the scorers, but the progress was confirmed with the hard-fought draw against one of Europe`s top sides.
It looked a real mountain to climb when the Spanish were two ahead early in the second half, but the reversal seemed to galvanise the Scots. A pass from the right by Forsyth found Wei Adams in space in the circle and the Canterbury striker buried the chance albeit at the second attempt.
The equaliser was a spectacular individual effort by Grange striker Hamish Imrie, he picked up the ball at half-way, waltzed past three Spanish defenders and finished by lifting the ball over the advancing goalkeeper.
There were a couple of chances at both ends to win the contest, Surbiton's Alan Forsyth beat a defender in the circle but his shot was blocked by the goalkeeper, while at the other end Spain were awarded a late penalty corner but the shot was bravely charged down by Byers.
"The result was a real credit to the entire squad, especially the youngsters who came to Barcelona with no real build-up. But they reacted very well to the sharp learning curve and it was a great building block for the Europeans later this summer," said Forsyth.
Meanwhile, five Western players were last night picked for back-to-back games against Brazil at Glasgow's National Hockey Centre today.
The Scotland side is a mixture of under-18 and under-21 players and the Brazilians are currently on a Scottish tour having played Division One side Edinburgh University and Grange.
Scotland squad: Alex Morrison (AGFP), Andrew Webb (Gordonians), Chris McFadden and Dean Barber (Clydesdale), Douglas Gourlay (Dunfermline Carnegie), Elliot Sandison and Fergus Sandison (Dundee Wanderers), Fabian Goldie, Joe McConnell, Luke Cranney, Murray McDiarmid, Rob Harwood (Western), Joe Waterson, Patrick Christie (Inverleith), Ryan McCurry (Grange), Jock Breckenridge (Edinburgh University), Phil Bryans (unattached), Jack Kinloch (Watsonians).
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